System and apparatus for the administration of drugs

ABSTRACT

Special drug-carrying trays and associated equipment for pharmacists and nurses for the administration of drugs to a plurality of patients, such as in hospitals or nursing homes, comprising the separate packaging, sealing, and labeling of each drug dose for each patient and arranging these individually packaged drugs in compartments in such trays. These compartments correspond to each room or bed and are labeled to correspond to each patient and each dose to be administered with separate trays being used for different dose times. These trays have specifically designed compartments for retaining the labels and drugs during transport, and for nesting and locking stacks of them together for transport between the pharmacy and the nursing facility. Thus the pharmacist prepares the trays and delivers one or more stacks of them to one or more nursing facilities all ready for the nurses to check and administer directly to their patients. This system also includes a form, slip, or card for checking the drugs, which form may be adapted for direct computerized billing.

United States Patent [72] Inventor Robert Richard Garbe, Jr.

4778 Maize Road, Columbus, Ohio 43224 21 Appl. No. 41,811 [22] FiledJune 1, 1970 [45] Patented Dec. 14, 1971 [54] SYSTEM AND APPARATUS FORTHE ADMINISTRATION OF DRUGS 14 Claims, 10 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S. Cl 206/65 R, 116/121,206/1.5,206/65 K, 206/72, 220/21, 220/97R, 312/111 [51] Int. Cl ..B65 d 71/00, 865d 1/34 [50] FleldolSearch116/121; 206/1.5, 17.5, 63.2 R, 65 R, 65 K, 72; 220/21, 97 R; 312/1 1 l[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,026,396 12/1935Meinecke.... 206/72 2,659,485 11/1953 Duley et al... 206/72 2,826,3473/1958 Schiavo 206/72 X 2,895,602 7/1959 Hait 206/72 X 3,145,841 8/1964McGuire 206/72 3,351,210 11/1967 Murcott 206/72X 3,442,378 5/1969Primary Examiner.loseph R. Leclair Assistant Examiner-Steven E. LipmanAttorney-Hugh Adam Kirk ABSTRACT: Special drug-carrying trays andassociated equipment for pharmacists and nurses for the administrationof drugs to a plurality of patients, such as in hospitals or nursinghomes, comprising the separate packaging, sealing, and labeling of eachdrug dose for each. patient and arranging these individually packageddrugs in compartments in such trays. These compartments correspond toeach room or bed and are labeled to correspond to each patient and eachdose to be administered with separate trays being used for differentdose times. These trays have specifically designed compartments forretaining the labels and drugs: during transport, and for nesting andlocking stacks of them together for transport between the pharmacy andthe nursing facility. Thus the pharmacist prepares the trays anddelivers one or more stacks of them to one or more nursing facilitiesall ready for the nurses to check and administer directly to theirpatients. This system also includes a form, slip, or card for checkingthe drugs,

which form may be adapted for direct computerized billing.

3&211211 Pmmmd Um. 14, 1971 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTUK ROBERT R. GARBE,JR.

ATTORNEY Pmmmwd @mu ML IQWL 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 7 ATTORNEY Pmmnmd BM. 14,1971 3,62%122 4 Sh ets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. ROBERT R. GARBE w JR.

ATTORNEY SYSTEM AND APPARATUS FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF DRUGS BACKGROUNDOF THE INVENTION Previously drugs for a plurality of patients such as ina hospital or nursing home usually have been prepared from bulkcontainers at the nursing facility, placed in individual open paper cupsresting on identifying cards on a flat tray. Previous improvements inthis system include the use of open trays with pluralities of cavitieswith means for inserting labels at each cavity, and to individuallypackage at least some of the drugs.

All of these prior systems have disadvantages of being quite timeconsuming and involving a high possibility of error (sometimes as highas 20 percent). These errors occur due to human errors, poor checkingprocedures, possibility of doses and/or labels moving from onecompartment of the tray to another during transport of the tray, etc.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The system of the present invention comprisesmeans or facilities at a pharmacy for separately packaging and labelingand/or storing pluralities of different doses of the same and differentdrugs, in the forms of tablets, capsules, liquids, injectables,suppositories, ophthalmics, powders, etc. into individually sealedcontainers, such as plastic heat or zip-lip scalable envelopes or bags,ampuls bottles, syringes, and the like. The individual packages for thedrugs are usually transparent so as to give an additional appearancecheck of the kind of drug that is being administered, such as its colorcode, shape, consistency, and the like. Since the same drug is oftenadministered at several different hours and for several days in the sameamounts to the same patient, a plurality of packages of each of thesedrugs are prepared and stored in properly labeled drawers or containersat the pharmacy. Of course many of the drugs may be purchased alreadyindividually prepackaged and labeled with the dosage therein, but ifnot, machines may be used by the pharmacist in making up theseindividual packages and properly labeling each with the name of the drugand the dosage in the package.

Since this system is adapted primarily for the administration of aplurality of different drugs to a plurality of patients at one or moreremote locations, such as in a number of beds in one or more sections orwards in a hospital or a nursing home, the pharmacist receives theorders for each of these patients and makes out a patient profile recordsheet, card, or form for each drug for each patient. These recordsinclude all the identifying information for the patient and drugincluding its cost, and separate copies of this record may be used bythe pharmacist, by the nursing facility, and/or by a computer forbilling purposes. Since patients in a nursing home or hospital pay theirbills in several different ways, in that some may be on Medicare, someon Welfare, some covered by insurance, and some pay directly, eachpayment method usually requires a different method of billing. The drugprofile record, however, is adapted for use with all billing systems andmay be used for direct billing or in conjunction with computerizedbilling.

Other apparatus employed in this system than the drugs, their packages,and their information records or forms, includes a plurality of trayswhich may be nested together, each of which trays has compartments withfull equal height walls, and means for stacking the trays together. Alid for the top tray includes means for clamping all of the traystogether once they are stacked, and for locking them together so thatthe drugs placed in any of the compartments cannot easily be changed normoved from one compartment to another in the transport of the stack fromthe pharmacy to the nursing facility. Thus only the pharmacist and thenursing facility have means such as keys for unlocking the stacks. Eachcompartment in these trays is provided with aligned notches in itsopposite sidewalls for receiving individual syringes, and with pocketsfor labels for flagging special treatment instructions, or to holdmedication cards used by nurses to check the drug or drugs placed in thecompartment by the pharmacist. Such a medication card can be the nursesup-to-date reference of medication changes. These pockets also aredesigned to have means for snapping in the labels identifying eachpatient and his drugs, so these latter labels cannot be easily removed.Separate trays are prepared and labeled for each different time duringthe day when drugs are to be administered to all of patients such aseight o'clock in the morning, noon, four oclock in the afternoon, andeight o'clock in the evening, together with possibly another tray forother hours for special circumstances. Each compartment in the traycorresponds to a bed, room, or patient in the hospital or home, or wardor wing thereof, and different stacks are provided for the dif ferentsections or wards as required.

From the drug prescriptions which may be telephoned to the pharmacist,the patient profile rec-0rd sheets and labels are made out with thisinformation. The pharmacist then places in the correspondingcompartments in the trays, the proper labels and drugs. Differentcolored labels may be used for different hours of administration, andcompartments which do not correspond to patients in certain beds orrooms may have blank labels placed therein as a further check that nopatient was forgotten. After the trays are labeled and filled for agiven period, such as a day, they are stacked, locked and delivered tothe nursing facility, where they are unlocked and may be checked by anurse both before and at the side of the patient when beingadministered, since these trays are carried directly by the nurses ontheir rounds to the patients. When the trays are empty they arerestacked and returned to the pharmacist when the next trays aredelivered for the following period or day. In the event a change indosage or cancellation of a dosage is required, all that has to be doneis to telephone the pharmacist, and the proper record or form card willbe made out by the pharmacist and the label in the compartment in thetray for that patient will be so marked.

Thus the systems and apparatus of this invention is adapted for use ofall dosage forms and is accurate, flexible, economic, time and spacesaving, and easy to set up, operate, check, recheck, change, administer,and bill.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE VIEWS: -PP The abovementioned and otherfeatures, objects, and advantages, and the manner of attaining them aredescribed more specifically below by reference to an embodiment of thisinvention showing in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. I discloses a perspective view of a stack of trays according tothis invention, with its transparent cover and locking handle thereforspaced above the top of the stack;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged plan view of one of the trays from the stack inFIG. I, showing the different doses and labels located in its differentcompartments;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the central compartment of the trayshown in FIGS. 11 or 2, through which the clamping rod for holding thetrays together projects, and showing the use of the notches in theopposite sidewalls for holding a syringe and/or a pencil;

FIG. 41 is a vertical section taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 2 through oneof the comer compartments of a tray, showing a signal label or nursesmedication card A in the pocket at its rear edge, and how theidentification label B is snapped in and held under the overhangingbottom of the pocket;

FIG. 5 is a perspective underside view of one of the corners of the trayin FIGS. I, 2 or at, showing a foot for the nesting of the trays oneupon another;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of one of the identification labels B whichis snapped into the bottom of each compartment;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a signal label or nurses medication cardor tag which is placed in the pocket at the back of each compartmentshown in FIGS. ll, 2 or 4;

FIG. b is a perspective view of the post or pedestal upon which a stackof trays are placed for enabling them to be clamped and locked together;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT:

Before describing the steps of the system of this invention the detailsof the apparatus involved in this system will first be described, one ofthe most important pieces of which is the stack of nestable trays andthe means for locking them together as disclosed in perspective in FIG.I.

I The Trays Referring specifically to these trays shown in FIGS. 1through 5, each tray 20 comprises a rectangular full bottom 22,frontside and backside 24 and 25, and right and left ends or sides 26and 27, all of which sides 24 through 27 are at right angles to therectangular edges of the bottom 22, of the same height, and preferablyformed integral therewith, such as of a white easily cleanablelightweight, plastic. Between the frontside and backside 24 and 25 are aplurality of parallel integral partitions 30 parallel to the sides 24and 25 and equally spaced from each other and said sides, andperpendicular thereto and parallel to the end sides 26 and 27 areanother plurality of equally spaced partitions 32. All of thesepartitions are of the same height as the sides 24 through 27. Thus atray is formed which, when covered by another tray or a cover plate 70,substantially completely closes each of the compartments 40 thereinfonned by these partitions 30, 32 and sides 24, 25, 26, 27.

In each of the partitions 32 there is provided, preferably adjacent thefront wall of each compartment 40, a notch 42 which is preferablyadjacent the front wall 24 and the back of each of the partitions 30,which notches 42 are aligned on opposite sides of each compartment so asto provide means for holding a pencil P or a syringe S as shown in FIGS.2 and 3. This syringe S contains a flag-shaped label L fastened thereonby the pharmacist which'prevents the syringe S from slidinglongitudinally or axially too far through its holding notches 42 and outof the compartment in which it is placed, in that the edges of the labelL will abut against the side partitions 32.

Also each compartment 40 is provided with a back card pocket 44 attachedto its back wall (see specifically FIGS. 1, 2 and 4). This pocket 44 hasa front wall 48 parallel to its backwall formed by the partition 30 orsidewall 25. The bottom 46 of this pocket 44 (see FIG. 4) is spacedabove the top of the bottom 22 of the tray. This pocket 44 may be usedfor a special signal or nurse medication check label, tag, or card A asshown in FIGS. 2, 4, and 7 which may be of an attractive color, such asred, to signal the nurse administering the drugs to that patient tocheck the drugs and/or only to administer the drugs under certainconditions, such as after checking the blood pressure or temperature ofthe patient. These tags or cards A may be bent over as shown in dottedlines A in FIGS. 2 and 4 when the trays 20 are stacked. The inner topedge of the pocket 44 is slightly below the top edge of its adjacenttray partition 30 so that the label A may be bent over into its positionA without obstructing this stacking.

Referring specifically to FIGS. 4 and 6, the label B which is snappedinto each compartment, has a double bend portion b which snaps under thespace below the bottom 46 of the pocket 44, so this label B cannoteasily be shaken out or removed from its compartment. This labelcontains on its vertical upright portion b the name of the patient, hisbed or room number, and the time the drugs are to be administered. Thebottom or base portion b"of this label B shown in FIG. 6 is printed withthe name of each drug and its amount or close that is to be administeredto that patient at that time. Thus each of the compartments 40 aresemipermanently labeled for each patient with his drugs and the time itis to be given, so it may be rechecked by the nurse at the time eachdrug is administered. Also these labels B for all the drugs delivered atone particular time may have a corresponding color, which is differentfrom the color of the labels B for drugs to be administered at othertimes.

II The Stacking Means At the outside bottom comer of each tray 20 theremay be provided a foot 50 (see FIGS. 4 and 5) which fits into the outerupper comers of the compartments 40 of the tray below it, to permit evenand interlocked stacking of the trays 20 as shown in FIG. 1. These feethave outward rectangular angles inset the thickness of the sides 24, 26and 25, 27 so as to fit closely into the upper outer corners of thecomer compartments 40 and accurately align the trays 20 in the stack.

In the bottom 22 of each of the trays 20 adjacent the center of thecenter partition wall 30, there is a noncircular or square hole 23 (seeFIGS. 2 and 3), through which the rod 60 (see FIGS. 1 and 8) canproject. This rod 60 is attached or welded to a baseplate or pedestal 62via a noncircular or square portion 64 which fits into the square hole23 of the bottom tray 20 of the stack. The length of the rod 60 may varydepending upon the number of trays to be stacked, which number isusually between four and ten trays. The upper end 66 or the rod 60 isthreaded and projects slightly above the top edge of the top tray asshown in FIG. 9, so as to project through and above the cover 70 intothe wingnut-acting locking handle 80.

The cover or lid 70 for the top tray of the stack maybe of a translucentor transparent plastic material, and is provided with feet 72 (seeFIG. 1) at its comers, corresponding to the feet 50 at the bottom comersof the trays 20, for nesting the cover 70 in place. At the center ofthis cover 70 there is provided a raised portion 74 (see FIGS. 1 and 9)on which the locking handle seats and which prevents scratching of thecover 70 when the handle 80 is rotated to screw it on to the top end ofthe rod 60.

Referring more specifically to FIGS. 1 and 9, the handle 80 acts also asa wingnut for the top end 66 of the rod 60 for clamping the stack oftrays 20 and their cover 70 together. Thus the handle 80 has an aperture82 in its center, which may be threaded or may contain an embedded nut84. This nut 84 may be inserted and held between two pieces 85 and 86 ofthe base portion of the handle 80, which pieces may be of plastic andare held or clamped together by screws 88 which screw into the ends ofthe bail portion 81 of the handle 80. These screws 88 may be countersunkinto apertures 87 in the lower piece 86, which lower piece 86 also maybe provided at each of its ends with notches 89 for the latch 92 of thelocking device 90.

This locking device 90 is attached to the cover 70 adjacent one end ofthe handle 80 by means of screws 91. Thus after the handle 80 has beenrotated to snug the cover 70 onto the top tray and has one of its endsaligned with the latch 92, the latch 92 may be manually slid by knob 94into its dotted line locking position shown in FIG. 9. The lockingdevice 90 may have a key lock 96 to lock the latch in its handle lockingposition, to which lock access may be had only by the pharmacist and aregistered nurse at the nursing facility. Thus once the handle 80 islatched and locked, the stack of trays 20 cannot be separated, sinceneither the handle 80 nor the rod 60 through its base 62 can be turned,because its square portion 64 is locked into the square hole 23 of thebottom tray 20.

III The System According to the system of this invention, theprescriptions are first received by the pharmacist, which may be bytelephone or slip from the doctor in charge of the patient, and fromthis prescription a patient profile record sheet is made out, whichsheet is the pharmacist's master record of the patients medications.

If a computerized billing system is used, one of the forms 100 shown inFIG. may be made out for each drug for each patient. This form 100preferably is a multicopy form and may be of a size and shape forcomputerization, such as for direct billing. On this form 100 areprovided spaces for the patients name, room or bed number, his accountnumber, the name of the nursing facility, the name and address of thepharmacy and its registration number, directions indicating the startingor cancelling of this drug order, the date, the administering timesand-spaces for the initials of the checking pharmacist, the prescriptionnumber, the name of the drug and its dose, and a billing code number forthe drug. This code number may be made up by the pharmacist of severaldigits, the first two of which may indicate the number of days for whichthe drug is to be administered, the second the number of times per day,the fourth and fifth the price per dose in cents, and the last two ofwhich may be reference numbers to prevent duplications in case anotherdrug may have the same price and administering times to prevent thecomputing machine from rejecting this number as a duplicate. Theseparate copies of this form 100 are for the pharmacists file, thenursing facility, and for computer billing. The copy for the nursingfacility may be sent with the stack of trays to the nursing facilityunder the cover 70 when that drug is initiated or stopped for checkpurposes to the nursing facility.

The pharmacist after making out the patient profile record sheets.and/or the forms 100, then has to obtain or prepare the drugs inseparate or unit dose packages and make out the labels B, and also thelabels A, if required. Pluralities of these separate drug packages forall of the patients serviced are arranged in boxes or containers inalphabetical order so that adequate supply thereof will be had for atleast the number of times that each drug is to be administered to all ofthe patients who are to take it. Each separate package is labeled withthe name of the drug and its dose 'or amount so that no error will occurtherein.

Next the pharmacist lays out the trays for the next period's or day'sadministerings, one tray for each different administering hour for allthe patients in one section or nursing facility, and labels the outsideof each tray 20 with this infonnation such as with replaceable adhesivelabels as shown in FIG. I. Then each tray 20 is filled as shown in FIG.2, by placing first therein all of the labels or slips B, shown in FIG.6 in the bottoms of each compartment), which labels B correspond to eachparticular bed or room in that section or facility, and if a patient isin that location, putting a properly filled out and colored label Btherein. Then these labels B are checked by the pharmacist and/or may beinitialed as checked on the spaces provided on the form 100 mentionedabove.

Next the compartments are filled with the drugs according to what is onthese labels B therein, such as with separate packages of tablets T,capsules C, bottles of liquids BL, injectables l, and even extra papercups 0 for the patient to use if he wishes not to touch the drug or totake more than one dose of a tablet or pill at one time. The filledtrays 20 are then stacked together on the rod 60, clamped and lockedtogether by the handle 80 and locking device 90, and sent to the nursingfacility and the former period's or day s stack of empty trays arecollected for refilling.

For each new drug or change in a drug, a new form 100 may be made outand a copy thereof sent with the stack as shown in FIG. 1 on the toptray 20. Thus the transparent cover 70 enables these order changes to beeasily seen and checked at the nursing facility. Since the nursingfacility has copies of all the forms 100, it can recheck and immediatelycorrect any errors before any drugs are taken to the patients. ln factthere are several ways to operate this system, depending upon the extentthe pharmacy or nursing home wishes to utilize or not utilize specialforms, computers, existing record systems, individual preferences, statelaws, etc. Thus application of the system of this invention is eachfacility requires consideration of all of these variables.

While there is described above the principles of this invention inconnection with specific apparatus and a system for using thisapparatus, it is to be clearly understood that this description is madeonly by way of example and not as a limitation to the scope of thisinvention.

lclaim:

l. Apparatus for the preparation and administration of a plurality ofindividual doses of drugs to a plurality of patients, comprising:

A. a plurality of identical trays for different times during apredetermined period, each tray having a plurality of compartments withat least one compartment foreach patient for his dose at a given'time,each compartment comprising:

A. four sidewalls at right angles to each other and a bottom,

2. a longitudinal pocket in one wall for a signal identification card,said pocket having a bottom spaced from and overhanging the bottom ofsaid compartment, and

3. a patient and dose identification card covering said bottom andhaving a folded portion extending under said bottom of said pocket forholding said card in place, 7

B. means for nesting said trays when stacked one on top of the other,

C. means for covering the top tray of said stack, and

D. means for fastening said trays and covering means together. I

2. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said trays are rectangularand said compartments in said trays are all substantially of the samesize.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the opposite sidewalls ofeach compartment are provided with notches for receiving syringes.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said nesting meanscomprises feet on the bottom comers of each of said trays and of saidcovering means.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said means for fasteningsaid trays together comprises a rod means extending through all of saidtrays.

6. An apparatus according to claim 5 wherein each tray has anoncircularly shaped aperture in the bottom of a center compartment anda correspondingly shaped means on one end of said rod means to preventits rotation, and a wingnut means for screwing onto the other end ofsaid rod means.

7. An apparatus according to claim 1 including handle means for saidstack attached to said fastening means.

8. An apparatus according to claim 7 including means for said coveringmeans for engaging said handle means for locking said covering means andtrays together.

9. An apparatus according to claim 8 wherein said locking meanscomprises a latching key mechanism mounted on said covering meansadjacent said handle means.

10. A tray for use in the administration of drugs comprising:

A. a rectangular bottom,

B. four sides of equal height around the edges of said bottom,

C. a plurality of partitions between opposite pairs of sides of equalheight to said sides and each other to form a plurality of rectangularcompartments of substantially the same size, with the partitions betweenone pair of sides being notched in their upper edges between adjacentcompanments, and

D. a pocket in each compartment on the partitions between the otherpairs of sides, said pockets being spaced from said bottom to form anoverhanging portion.

11. A tray according to claim 10 including feet at each corner of thebottom of said tray, which feet fit into the upper corners of the comercompartments of another tray below it.

112. A stack of trays for use in the administration of drugs whereineach tray comprises: v

A. a rectangular bottom having a noncircular-shapcd hole near itscenter,

8. four sides of equal height around the edges of said bottom,

C. a plurality of partitions between opposite pairs of sides of equalheight to said sides and each other to form a plurality of rectangularcompartments of substantially the same size, the partitions between onepair of sides having notches in their upper edges aligned betweenadjacent compartments,

D. a pocket in each compartment on the partitions between the other pairof edges and spaced from said bottom to form an overhanging portion,

E. feet at each corner of the bottom which fit into the corners of thecomer compartments of another tray below it, and wherein said stackcomprises:

1. a transparent rectangular cover for the top tray with a hole near itscenter, comprising a. feet on each comer which fit into the comers ofthe comer compartments of said top tray, b. a raised portion in itscenter with a hole therein aligned with said hole in said cover, and c.a latch and lock mechanism attached to said cover adjacent said raisedportion,

2. a pedestal and rod having a noncircular portion adjacent saidpedestal for fitting into and extending through all said noncircularshaped holes in the bottom of said trays in said stack, and said rodhaving a threaded upper end which extends through said hole in saidcover and slightly above said raised portion of said cover, and

3. a handle means having a threaded socket therein for receiving saidthreaded upper portion of said rod, which handle means clamps said coverand stack of trays together.

13. A stack of trays according to claim 12 wherein said handle means hasa keeper portion, and said cover has a locking mechanism mounted thereonfor engagement with said keeper portion.

14. A stack of trays according to claim 13 wherein said lockingmechanism includes means for locking said locking mechanism intoengagement with said keeper portion.

1. Apparatus for the preparation and administration of a plurality ofindividual doses of drugs to a plurality of patients, comprising: A. aplurality of identical trays for different times during a predeterminedperiod, each tray having a plurality of compartments with at least onecompartment for each patient for his dose at a given time, eachcompartment comprising:
 1. four sidewalls at right angles to each otherand a bottom,
 2. a longitudinal pocket in one wall for a signalidentification card, said pocket having a bottom spaced from andoverhanging the bottom of said compartment, and
 3. a patient and doseidentification card covering said bottom and having a folded portionextending under said bottom of said pocket for holding said card inplace, B. means for nesting said trays when stacked one on top of theother, C. means for covering the top tray of said stack, and D. Meansfor fastening said trays and covering means together.
 2. An apparatusaccording to claim 1 wherein said trays are rectangular and saidcompartments in said trays are all substantially of the same size.
 2. alongitudinal pocket in one wall for a signal identification card, saidpocket having a bottom spaced from and overhanging the bottom of saidcompartment, and
 2. a pedestal and rod having a noncircular portionadjacent said pedestal for fitting into and extending through all saidnoncircular shaped holes in the bottom of said trays in said stack, andsaid rod having a threaded upper end which extends through said hole insaid cover and slightly above said raised portion of said cover, and 3.a handle means having a threaded socket therein for receiving saidthreaded upper portion of said rod, which handle means clamps said coverand stack of trays together.
 3. a patient and dose identification cardcovering said bottom and having a folded portion extending under saidbottom of said pocket for holding said card in place, B. means fornesting said trays when stacked one on top of the other, C. means forcovering the top tray of said stack, and D. Means for fastening saidtrays and covering means together.
 3. An apparatus according to claim 1wherein the opposite sidewalls of each compartment are provided withnotches for receiving syringes.
 4. An apparatus according to claim 1wherein said nesting means comprises feet on the bottom corners of eachof said trays and of said covering means.
 5. An apparatus according toclaim 1 wherein said means for fastening said trays together comprises arod means extending through all of said trays.
 6. An apparatus accordingto claim 5 wherein each tray has a noncircularly shaped aperture in thebottom of a center compartment and a correspondingly shaped means on oneend of said rod means to prevent its rotation, and a wingnut means forscrewing onto the other end of said rod means.
 7. An apparatus accordingto claim 1 including handle means for said stack attached to saidfastening means.
 8. An apparatus according to claim 7 including meansfor said covering means for engaging said handle means for locking saidcovering means and trays together.
 9. An apparatus according to claim 8wherein said locking means comprises a latching key mechanism mounted onsaid covering means adjacent said handle means.
 10. A tray for use inthe administration of drugs comprising: A. a rectangular bottom, B. foursides of equal height around the edges of said bottom, C. a plurality ofpartitions between opposite pairs of sides of equal height to said sidesand each other to form a plurality of rectangular compartments ofsubstantially the same size, with the partitions between one pair ofsides being notched in their upper edges between adjacent compartments,and D. a pocket in each compartment on the partitions between the otherpairs of sides, said pockets being spaced from said bottom to form anoverhanging portion.
 11. A tray according to claim 10 including feet ateach corner of the bottom of said tray, which feet fit into the uppercorners of the corner compartments of another tray below it.
 12. A stackof trays for use in the administration of drugs wherein each traycomprises: A. a rectangular bottom having a noncircular-shaped hole nearits center, B. four sides of equal height around the edges of saidbottom, C. a plurality of partitions between opposite pairs of sides ofequal height to said sides and each other to form a plurality ofrectangular compartments of substantially the same size, the partitionsbetween one pair of sides having notches in their upper edges alignedbetween adjacent compartments, D. a pocket in each compartment on thepartitions between the other pair of edges and spaced from said bottomto form an overhanging portion, E. feet at each corner of the bottomwhich fit into the corners of the corner compartments of another traybelow it, and wherein said stack comprises:
 13. A stack of traysaccording to claim 12 wherein said handle means has a keeper portion,and said cover has a locking mechanism mounted thereon for engagementwith said keeper portion.
 14. A stack of trays according to claim 13wherein said locking mechanism includes means for locking said lockingmechanism into engagement with said keeper portion.